The Majickal Garden

homeopathy is where u take these pills to calm u down or for other purposes
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/homeopathy/

acupuncture is where u get needles poked into u esp into ur pressure points to de-stress u..
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/acupuncture/

Homeopathy is indeed a lame myth that does not work: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2539/whats-up-with-homeopathy

Acupuncture can work, but only for certain things, not everything.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2543/does-acupuncture-really-work

Unfortunately, there are a number of people that like to respond in the Alternative Medicine Section who are undying skeptics who express doubt in anything that isn’t accepted medical science in Allopathic Medicine (BTW – my family doctor, who is an Allopath, says the term is perfectly acceptable and appropriate). Their position is the other side of the coin.

Homeopathy is based on the idea that trace amounts of a substance that would cause the group of symptoms that one is trying to cure in a healthy person, will cure a person experiencing those symptoms. I’ve used techniques in bodywork that use the same principal. Identify what is happening, exaggerate it ever so slightly for a few moments, the brain gets feedback on what is happening, and the body begins to heal itself.

The National Institute of Health says that scientific studies have been contradictory – some showed beneficial results while others showed a lack of any benefit. It also states the a few cases of negative side effects were reported and investigated by the FDA, which concluded that the remedies were not likely to be the cause. NCCAM (part of the NIH) is conducting research.

As for Acupuncture, it follows the theory that health is based on the flow of Chi (similar to Ki, Qi, Prana, and on my website I just refer to it as energy) through the meridians. The meridians were developed/discovered by Chinese Physicians over a span of thousands of years. There are other techniques besides the needles, however the needles (which you don’t feel BTW) are the most studied aspect.

NIH research has shown acupuncture to be effective with (knee) pain, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and maintaining pregnancy (after In-Vitro Fertilization).

The Mayo Clinic reports that Acupuncture may be effective in treating a number of specific pain-related conditions (headaches, Fibromyalgia, etc) as well as Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

The reality is that both are complex approaches to treating the body and may be effective for a variety of conditions. My articles are frequently long, but there’s no way to convey all the available information.

As for which is better, it depends on the person seeking treatment, the therapist (or doctor), and the condition. Personally, I am a believer in working with many types of therapists and physicians depending on the condition (I just referred a client to an Acupuncturist 2 days ago, we will likely both treat the leg pain and numbness together). Everyone has their specialty approach.

If you are experiencing a pain-related disorder, you may start with Acupuncture or massage (most pain comes from soft tissue, massage therapists, LMT, are soft-tissue specialists). If you have a broken bone, operable tumor, or an infection, an Allopathic Doctor (MD) is almost always your only sane and intelligent option. If bone movement is a concern, Osteopaths (DO) are a great option. If nerve impingement from a bone is the issue, a Chiropractor (DC) may be your best approach.

Each has their specialty, each has their philosophy. We don’t have enough information to say which is better for you right now with whatever you are dealing with.

EDIT – Actually, there is quite a bit of science involved. There are hundreds of studies confirming the benefits of various “Alternative” treatments. They don’t all lend themselves easily to scientific study – for example, a client comes in for a massage complaining of headaches. Allopathic Medicine (a term confirmed to be appropriate and in common useage by my own family doctor who has the MD title) is likely to prescribe some kind of painkiller and/or muscle relaxer. My approach will vary from a Craniosacral CV-4 hold on the Occiput (I’m assuming that since you’re talking science you can handle A&P), unwinding the mandible, a parietal lift hold, a temporal bone release, or unwinding the sacrum (note – these are all bones worked with Craniosacral Therapy – see http://www.apath2healing.com/Massage-Styles.html for information). I could also or instead work the muscular system – scalenes, trapezius, levator scapulae, suboccipitals, sternocleidomastoid, and splenious capitus are all known and published causes of headaches. The issue with scientific control is that I am dealing with a lot more variables, which have to be controlled in scientific studies.

As for Quackwatch, I actually have a license to practice and probably have more education than the author of that website. I know for certain that I’ve suffered from fewer lawsuits – rumor is he looses a half-dozen cases a year for libel and other issues (considering I stopped checking his site 12 years ago, that’s quite a bit) and lacks any license to practice.

Wow, this is unbelievable. People are so gullible and delusional it is truly sad. I know that my response is likely to anger some people, but I just have to respond. Crystal Waker, kudos for doing a great job at probably pulling other people without a scientific background into your delusion by making it seem rational. I need to respond specifically to your “essay”. Here’s the main point that needs to be addressed. Medicine relies on scientific fact and evidence, and professes no allegence to “beliefs” that aren’t backed up by proof…and then there’s alternative medicine that includes anything that doesn’t have scientific evidence to back it up. If you decided to invent your own type of treatment, based on nothing scientific, it would be considered “alternative medicine”. Alternative med proponents love to make it seem like there are two separate but equal types of medicine, by inventing a term for real medicine called “allopathy” because it sounds like “homeopathy”…clever.

Alternative medicine techniques are usually invented by someone without any knowledge of modern science (and typically adopted by the same types of people). Anybody could make up whatever crazy stuff they wanted and call it “alternative medicine”. Doesn’t that produce any red flags for you? Don’t you see that responsible medicine specifically doesn’t include “making stuff up”. When you go see a medical doctor, there is a legit scientific reason that guides their treatment. Picture this….you complain about a headache, and your doctor starts flicking your earlobes because they have a “hunch” that it’s going to work. You’d ask why they think that’ll work, and they respond, “No reason really, I just think it will.” Wouldn’t that be weird?! That’s what alternative medicine is. A lot of times, the ailment goes away on its own, but the quack remedy gets the credit.

Notice how alternative medical proponents, like “Crystal Waker”, bash conventional medicine’s adherence to scientific research. But then refer to the NIH and Mayo Clinic if it could benefit their cause.

Crystal Waker, do you really believe in treatments based on homeopathy, subluxation therapy, magnet therapy, etc? You stated that for broken bones, tumors, and infections, the only sane and intelligent choice is to go to an M.D. That’s because in those situations you need the therapy to “really work”. Whereas ailments like headaches, and stress aren’t really crucial and thus probably don’t matter if the “treatment” doesn’t do anything.

Since I didn’t have time to talk specifically about homeopathy, please do yourself a favor and read the attached article.